|
September
2005
Sumitomo Smart-Tag System
Gives Wine Recommendations
Sumitomo Corp. will begin practical testing in November of a system that
makes use of wireless smart tags to display information on a particular
type of wine when the bottle is taken from a shelf. This test will be part
of a project sponsored by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry to
promote expanded uses for smart tags. To date, use has been limited
largely to inventory management. The system will be installed at the
Shinagawa store of Queen's Isetan Co., an Isetan Co. -affiliated operator
of high-end supermarkets. The test will continue through January. All
3,000 bottles of wine in the store will have smart tags attached. Shelves
will be equipped with reader and LCD equipment. When a consumer moves a
bottle, a reader will detect it and information, such as food suggestions
for the wine, will be shown on a monitor. Data will also be sent to the
inventory management system. The system makes use of software developed by
U.S. firm OATSystems Inc., an RFID (radio frequency identification)
technology specialist for which Sumitomo is the general agent in Japan.
(The Nihon Keizai Shimbun, September 13, 2005)
August
2005
Suntory Forms U.S. Liquor
Joint Venture With U.K. Firm
Suntory Ltd. said Monday that it has established a U.S. joint venture with
U.K.-based Blavod Extreme Spirits Plc that will manufacture and sell
distilled liquor in the U.S. Diamante Spirits LLC is capitalized at
around 500 million yen, with Suntory's U.S. subsidiary Suntory
International Corp. and Blavod each taking 50% stakes. Blavod President
Jeffery Hopmayer has been tapped as Diamante Spirits' top chief. The
new company will pursue operations beginning with product development all
the way to sales of distilled spirits, including vodka and gin. Demand in
the U.S. market for higher-end distilled spirits with a price tag of at
least 2,000 yen per bottle is soaring. Suntory plans to roll out new
products in the U.S. market this year through Diamante Spirits. Suntory
has sought to expand its product offerings in the U.S. market but has made
little progress beyond Japanese shochu liquor. By exploiting Blavod's
know-how in U.S. marketing, Suntory hopes to accelerate the expansion of
its own liquor operations in the U.S. (The Nihon Keizai Shimbun、August
22, 2005)
3 Beer Producers Raise
Projections For Beer-Like Beverage Sales
Three major beer producers have raised their projections for sales of
lower-priced, beer-like alcoholic drinks for this year in view of brisk
demand. Beer-like drinks, commonly known as "third beers," use
ingredients other than malt but taste similar to beer. Kirin Brewery Co.
has led the market since entering it in April with a product named "Nodogoshi".
The company now targets sales of 30 million cases (one case holds 20 large
bottles) for this year, instead of the earlier projected 19.7 million
cases. Suntory Ltd. also doubled its projection to 20 million cases. The
company sells products called "Super Blue" and "Kireaji."
Sapporo Breweries Ltd., under the wing of Sapporo Holdings Ltd., aims to
sell 25 million cases. The projection was revised upward from 22 million
cases. The company is the creator of the product category and its first
product, "Draft One," hit the market in February 2004. The third
beer market expanded rapidly after Kirin and Asahi Breweries Ltd. entered
the fray in April this year. It accounted for 14% of the combined sales of
beer and beer-like drinks, including those of low-malt beer, in the first
six months of this year. (The Nihon Keizai Shimbun, August 22, 2005)
Mercian To Boost Shochu
Liquor Output Capacity By 60%
Mercian Corp. plans to increase its annual production capacity for type B
shochu, a kind of alcoholic drink, by 60% to 10,000kl by September 2006.
The alcoholic beverage maker has earmarked 2.5 billion yen to replace
outdated equipment in the shochu production facility at its plant in
Kumamoto Prefecture. Mercian plans to start constructing a new building in
November. While moving existing equipment to that building, the firm will
raise the number of fermentation tanks and distillation equipment by 50%
so that it can make various shochu products. It also intends to produce
shochu made from rice as well as from barley. In addition, Mercian plans
to build an experimental production facility in which it can make various
types of shochu on a test basis so that it can offer different qualities
and tastes. It also wants to build up expertise in production methods.
Type B shochu is marked by distinctive tastes and flavors, and it is one
of the few categories of alcoholic drinks that is growing. The market for
such products rose 17% in 2004 to 526,568 kl. (The Nihon Keizai Shimbun,
August 17, 2005)
|
